How Gifted Students Believe in Leadership Talent and Leader Development: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

• In Event: Giftedness, Creativity, and Talent Development Poster Session 1

Abstract

Leadership is widely considered an aspect of giftedness, but is rarely studied by giftedness scholars. We examined students’ beliefs regarding their own leadership abilities and potential, surveying a cross-cultural sample of 440 gifted and 303 non-identified secondary-age participants to elicit their perceptions, aspirations, and expectations regarding effective leaders and leadership development. Students preferred leaders who provide a vision for the future and who care about others’ feelings. They identified honesty, social responsibility, and morality as the most important characteristics of future leaders. Compared to non-identified students, gifted students showed greater aspirations to become leaders. We suggest how salient dimensions of cultural difference may have influenced some specific results observed for gifted students from South Korea versus the U.S. cultural context.

Authors

• Seon-Young Lee, Seoul National University

• Michael S. Matthews, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Yun kyoung Kim, Seoul National University

• Eunjoo Boo, Seoul National University